What if Dark Cupid didn't show up for a few more seconds?
by witchinmoonlight
Summary: Title is pretty self-explanatory.
1. Dark Cupid's Curse

Author's Notes:

-The title should be pretty self-explanatory, but for those of you who don't get it, here's what happens. This is an alternative scenario from the episode Dark Cupid where Cat Noir gets to confess his love for his masked sweetheart, Ladybug.

-The cover picture does not belong to me.

For those of you who have not seen Dark Cupid, avert your eyes now. For those that have seen it, let us begin this story.

It had been another chaotic day in the city of Paris. It was Valentine's Day in Paris, the city of love. Unfortunately, Kim had been akumatized into Dark Cupid, a heart-breaking, hate-spreading super-villain. Marinette had just seen her friend Alya turn against her thanks to Dark Cupid's arrow.

"Tikki, spots on!" Marinette exclaimed.

With the aid of Tikki, Marinette transformed into Ladybug. She then pursued the akumatized villain. Meanwhile, over at the Agreste Mansion, Adrien was thinking about Ladybug. He got up from his chair and stared out into the window.

"I don't need a poem when I can tell her to face; "I love you."" Adrien said.

Plagg reacted in disgust. "You're making me lose my appetite." He ate another piece of Camembert. "Well, almost."

"You know what, Plagg. I will tell her. Right now." Adrien declared. "Plagg, claws out!"

Plagg was sucked into the ring and transformed Adrien into Cat Noir. He climbed to the roof and used his staff as a tracking device to find Ladybug. Meanwhile, Dark Cupid looked at the city of Paris below him. He didn't see Ladybug. Hawkmoth spoke to him.

"If you want to continue destroying love, bring me Ladybug's Miraculous or I'll remove your powers!" Hawkmoth ordered.

He then flew around, looking for his target.

"Fallen for me already, my lady? I wanna talk to you." Cat Noir told her.

"It's gotta wait. Dark Cupid..." Ladybug started to say.

"Shh. I swore to myself I'd tell you as soon as I saw you." Cat Noir said. "Ladybug, I, I love you."

Ladybug wanted to gasp, but she felt breathless. "You...you do?"

"Yes, I do. You're everything to me. I adore you." Cat Noir answered. "I wrote you a poem, even though I don't think it's very good." He cleared his throat. "You hair is as dark as night, your pretty blue bell eyes. I wonder who are you beneath that strong disguise."

"You want to...?" Ladybug started to ask. She heard a swoosh in the air. "Cat Noir, look out!"

"Huh?!" Cat Noir exclaimed. He saw Dark Cupid heading right towards him. He jumped down from the ground and dodged his arrows. Ladybug swung down and landed on her feet.

"Finally, I found both of them." Dark Cupid said.

Spinning her yo-yo to act as a shield, she protected herself and Cat Noir while the latter retrieved his staff. He then used his staff and deflected his arrows as Ladybug tried to grab one of his ankles with her yoyo.

"Everyday we see each other and I hope that you'll be mine. Together our love could be so true, please will you be my valentine?" Cat Noir asked, finishing his poem.

Ladybug widened her eyes and gasped. She dropped her yoyo. "Cat... Cat Noir.. You..." she tried to say. But she was knocked down with one of Dark Cupid's arrows.

"Ladybug, no!" Cat Noir screamed. He ran towards her. Dark Cupid smirked. Ladybug's lips turned black. She chuckled in a sinister manner.

"You are a fool Cat Noir to think that I would ever like you." Ladybug said. "You're just a second rate hero. Without me, you're nothing!" Cat Noir gasped. "And by the way, I hate you and I don't need you!"

Cat Noir was nearly hit by one of Dark Cupid's arrows, but he quickly dodged. He started to run away to avoid being hit. Dark Cupid flew after him. Cat Noir broke his staff into two pieces, and flung one of them at Dark Cupid's face as if it was a boomerang. This temporarily stunned him, leaving Cat Noir time to get away. He eventually found an alley and hid behind a dumpster. He panted, breathing heavily, trying understand everything that just happened.

"This doesn't make sense..." Cat Noir muttered to himself. "How could Ladybug hate me? Even if she doesn't love me, she's always been my friend."

 _Wait a minute,_ he thought to himself. _She was trying to warn me that we had to stop Dark Cupid! Dark Cupid is a hate-spreading akumatized villain. And now Ladybug's turned against me because of it! Oh, great. Now what?_

He then recalled that love was being discussed in his English Literature class.

"The prince breaks the spell by kissing the princess." Mrs. Bustier said during class.

"Only love can conquer hate." Rose said.

He knew how to reverse the curse on Ladybug, although it was easier said than done. Ladybug could tie him up with his yoyo, or use a lucky charm item to kill him and/or steal his Miraculous. If they defeated him, it was over. Cat Noir had nothing but his Cataclysm superpower. How could he use that to his advantage? He didn't know what to do, but if he didn't do something, Hawkmoth would eventually win.


	2. Cat Noir Has No Plan

Cat Noir needed a plan, but he didn't have one. He transformed into Adrien.

"Why aren't you saving Ladybug?" Plagg asked. "I thought you were in love with her."

"I am, but I don't know what to do." Adrien admitted. "I can think of so many ways trying to stop Dark Cupid and save Ladybug could go terribly wrong. You got any advice?"

"I got nothing." Plagg answered.

"Of course." Adrien said.

Adrien had to think of something. He had thought of asking Chloe to assist him, but he didn't like the idea of working with her. He also thought that she would be unwilling to help her if she had known what he had wanted her to do. Not having any good plans, and running out of time, he did the only thing he could; search for Ladybug and Dark Cupid without a plan. It was sunset, and Adrien was looking for the duo in his civilian form. He eventually found them at the Eiffel Tower, which was, to Adrien's surprise, deserted. Much to his horror, he found two of his friends dangling from a rope tied to a piece of wood.

"I don't get it. What could Ladybug and that flying heartbreak dude want with us?" Alya asked. "And how did she turn evil?"

"I don't know." Nino answered. "I'm just wondering how we got into this situation in the first place."

"We know you're hiding, Cat Noir!" Ladybug shouted.

"If you want these two lives spared, then you will come out and surrender your Miraculous right now!" Dark Cupid threatened. "If you refuse, then take a good look at these two innocent civilians, because this will be the last you will ever see of them!"

"Plagg, claws out!" Adrien whispered under his breath. He transformed into Cat Noir, rather worried for the sake of his friends.

"We're doomed." Nino said.

"I hate to say it, but I think you're right." Alya added.

"Not so fast, Dark Cupid!" a voice called out. Cat Noir appeared.

"Cat Noir!" Nino exclaimed.

"It's about time." Ladybug said.

"My lady, I don't want to fight you, but it seems now that there's no choice in the matter." Cat Noir said. He charged forward. He climbed up the Eiffel Tower and eventually made it to where Ladybug and Dark Cupid stood.

"I've had enough of this." Ladybug said. "Lucky charm!" She used Lucky Charm and got a mousetrap. "A mousetrap?"

"Cataclysm!" Cat Noir said, summoning his power. Ladybug started looking around trying to figure out how to use lucky charm. While she did this, Cat Noir used Cataclysm on Dark Cupid's quiver, causing all of his arrows to be destroyed. He then grabbed Ladybug's wrist and kissed her. After three seconds, Ladybug closed her eyes and kissed him back. Her lips were no longer black and the curse had been broken.

"Huh? What am I doing here?" Ladybug asked.

"Long story short, you were hit with one of Dark Cupid's arrows." Cat Noir answered. "Got any ideas on how to defeat him with a mousetrap?"

Ladybug looked around. "Just one." she answered. She threw the mousetrap at Kim's pin, causing it to fall off. "Now Chat!" He jumped down and retrieved the pin faster than Dark Cupid did. He crushed it with his foot and the akuma was released. "No more evil doing for you, little akuma. Time to deevilize!" She caught the akuma. "Gotcha!" She released the white butterfly. "Bye-bye little butterfly." The mousetrap appeared back in her hands. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

All the damage that had been done by Dark Cupid had been undone. Well, most of it. Sabrina was at Le Grand Paris and she screamed in terror.

"What am I doing?! What have I done?!" Sabrina asked herself. Chloe ran in and saw the damage. Chloe's poster of Adrien had been burned to ashes, leaving nothing but a golden frame.

"What did you do?!" Chloe asked.

"I...I don't know. All I remember is being hit with an arrow and the rest is all a blur." Sabrina answered.

Alya and Nino were safely on the ground, no longer tied up. Dark Cupid turned back into Kim and asked, "What, what am I doing here?"

"Pound it!" Cat Noir and Ladybug said in unison.

"Look my lady, normally I wouldn't have kissed you against your own will, but I had to break the spell." Cat Noir exclaimed.

"We...we kissed?!" Ladybug exclaimed. Her Miraculous beeped again. "I...I gotta go. I'll see you around." She used her yoyo and swung away, leaving Cat Noir there. Cat Noir then ran off. By the time he got back to his room, he was emotionally exhausted. He detransformed and saw a big pile of Valentine's Day cards.

"Well, you got a lot of cards here. Pick a card, any card!" Plagg said. He tossed a pink heart shaped card aside.

"Someone answered my poem?" Adrien asked. "But I threw it away!" Plagg shrugged. "Your hair shines like the sun, your eyes a gorgeous green. When I see you I wonder your innermost thoughts and dreams. Yes, I will be your valentine together our love will be so true. Forever in eternity, my heart belongs to you." Adrien read. "But it isn't signed. Well, Plagg there's only one thing left to do."

"Eat more Camembert?" he asked.

"No." Adrien answered. "Uncover who Ladybug is with this letter."


	3. Ladybugs and Love Letters

Adrien created a list of all of the girls in his class. The list had Chloe, Sabrina, Alya, Mylene, Alix, Rose, and Juleka. Adrien couldn't help but think that he had forgotten someone.

"Isn't there someone I'm forgetting?" Adrien asked.

"What about that fashion designer, what's her name, Marionette?" Plagg asked.

"Marinette, that's it. Thanks Plagg." Adrien said. "Okay, time to start the process of elimination."

Adrien recalled that Chloe was attacked by Lady Wifi, who was Alya, Alix was akumatized and became Timebreaker, and Sabrina was carrying Chloe off to safety during today's chaotic events. The list then looked like this;

Mylene

Rose

Juleka

Marinette

"Well, then, we have a few ideas on who it is. We've got Juleka, Rose, Mylene and Marinette." Adrien said. "Are there any other ways to determine who Ladybug is?"

"Not sure." Plagg answered, eating more Camembert. "If it wasn't for the fact that kwami magic hides true identities, you and Ladybug would have discovered each others identities a long time ago."

Meanwhile, Ladybug had just swung herself to the Notre Dame. She ran into the cathedral. Her Miraculous beeped and she detransformed. She breathed in and out rapidly. Tikki noticed this.

"Marinette, is everything ok?" Tikki asked.

"I...I can't believe this..." Marinette said. "Adrien... IS Cat Noir!"

"What?! How...how do you...?" Tikki tried to ask.

"That poem Cat Noir recited to me, is the same problem Adrien wrote!" Marinette exclaimed. "There's no other logical explanation. That letter Adrien wrote was for Ladybug. It was for me..." Her breathing slowed down.

"Okay... Calm down. So we know that Adrien is Cat Noir. And he likes your superhero persona." Tikki said. "Will you reveal your true identity to Cat Noir?"

"I don't know. I've always been scared that no one would like me if they knew who I am behind the mask." Marinette said. "What I don't get is well, the Adrien that I know, is so different from Cat Noir. Why is this?"

"I don't know." Tikki answered. She looked around. "Is this the Notre Dame?"

"Yes it is." Marinette answered. "My parents got married in this very church 20 years ago."

"Anyway, back to the Adrien Cat Noir situation." Tikki said. "What are you gonna do?"

"I don't know." Marinette answered. "Adrien doesn't know who I am because I forgot to sign that love letter..."

"If only this was easy." Tikki commented.

"When is anything actually easy?" Marinette asked. Tikki shrugged and flew into Marinette's bag. Marinette looked at the altar sadly. "Adrien doesn't even like the real me. Not like Cat Noir loves Ladybug."

"Maybe you could spend some more time with him. You might be able to find out more about him, and possibly figure out why Cat Noir acts like he does. Who knows, maybe you might get him to like you as more than just a friend." Tikki suggested.

"Alright. That might work. If only I had the courage to speak to him." Marinette said.

"Don't give up, Marinette. You'll find a way." Tikki said.

"You're right." Marinette said. She closed her bag and looked at the altar, smiling. "I won't give up."

Two days later, they were back in school. Alya held a photo of her and Marinette. It had been cut apart with scissors while under Dark Cupid's spell and later taped back together any destroyed photos. Chloe was still bummed about her poster of Adrien being burned. Adrien was staring off into space, trying to figure out who wrote him the love letter. A few hours later, during their lunch break, Adrien sat down on a bench, looking at the love letter.

"Who wrote this letter?" he asked.

"Oh Adrikens, are you talking about this little love poem here?" Chloe asked, pointing to the letter. "It was written by me."

"Really Chloe?" Adrien asked. "Nice try, but you can't fool me."

"Wha...what?" Chloe asked. Adrien walked away. "I don't get it. How did he see right through my lie?! What is going on?!" Chloe heard a sad trombone sound heard. She turned around and saw Sabrina with her phone. "Will you cut that out?!"

"Sorry Chloe!" Sabrina exclaimed.

After school, she met up with Adrien at the park nearby her house.

"So is there a reason why you asked me to come here?" Adrien asked.

"I just thought that we could, just, get away from all the craziness of high school life." Marinette answered. "No akuma attacks, no spoiled brats, just you and me, and the bright blue sky."

"I know most students find high school stressful." Adrien said. "Honestly, I exactly enjoy school because, well, for a long time, I was home-schooled."

"Home-schooled?" Marinette asked.

"Can I confide in you?" Adrien asked.

"Sure. You can tell me anything." Marinette answered.

"My father's been overprotective of me my whole life. Until this year, I wasn't allowed to go to a normal school." Adrien said. "I just want to live a normal life, but I guess that isn't really possible..."

"Why do you say that?" Marinette asked.

"Multiple reasons." Adrien answered. "For one thing, several girls at the school want to steal my heart. I'm a model, which also adds to the crazy fan girl army."

Marinette chuckled. She said, "I shouldn't be laughing."

"It's ok. I've never really called my fans a crazy fan girl army." Adrien responded.

"And then we have the craziest of them all..." Marinette started to say.

"Chloe Bourgeious." they answered in unison.

"Speaking of Chloe, why were you friends with someone like her in the first place?" Marinette asked.

"Well, it's a long story on that." Adrien answered.


	4. Hidden Talent

Chloe and Sabrina were in her room at Le Grand Paris.

"Nothing makes sense." Chloe complained to Sabrina. "How did Adrien know I was lying?"

"I don't know Chloe." Sabrina answered. "You've asked me that a hundred times already." She shrugged. "Maybe he wrote a poem to someone else and that letter was the response?"

"I thought Adrien wasn't really in love with anyone though." Chloe said. "Although now that you mention it, I remember Marinette digging through the trash can and pulling out a piece of paper. Maybe it was Adrien's poem!"

"You think that is the case?" Sabrina asked.

"Well, it is certainly possible." Chloe answered. "I've noticed that Adrien seems to be more friendly towards her lately. Have you noticed anything?"

"Hmm... Well, sometime after my father had been fired, and later akumatized, Adrien disappeared while the adults were arguing. Sometime after Rogercop appeared, Marinette disappeared as well." Sabrina asked.

"Really?" Chloe asked. "Now that I hadn't noticed." She looked at a poster of Marinette with several darts in it. "If Adrien and Marinette are absent from class part of the time, it's likely that they're doing something together." She threw another dart at Marinette's poster, hitting her left shoulder. "Now if this is the case, what are they doing?"

"I'm not sure." Sabrina answered.

"Well, whatever they're up to, I'm gonna find out what it is." Chloe said. She threw another dart at the poster, hitting Marinette in the heart.

Meanwhile Adrien and Marinette were in the park. Adrien decided to confide in Marinette and tell her how she became friends with Chloe in the first place. Despite having not been allowed to leave the house for most of his life, Adrien and his parents were at a sunny beach down in Normandy. Prado Beaches to be exact. He was about five years old, and Gabriel was helping him build a sandcastle. Gabriel's phone rang and he left. Adrien heard the waves crash, and he saw a young girl about his age with loose blond hair and ocean blue eyes. She wore a yellow swimsuit, and blinked at Adrien. This girl was Chloe. She noticed Adrien and walked up to him with her hands enclosed.

"Uh, hello." he said.

"I have something for you." she said. She opened her hands and revealed a seashell in her hands.

"Um, thanks... Ms..."

"Bourgeious. Chloe Bourgeious." she said.

"Adrien Agreste." he said. "Nice to meet you."

The two continued having fun on the beach until sunset, when Chloe's father had to take her back home for the day.

"I've been friends with her ever since then. She's been really nice to me, and she's been there when no one else was. Until I met Nino, Chloe was my best and only friend." Adrien explained. "How can I throw her under the bus?"

"I never asked you to stop being friends with her." Marinette said. "I was just..."

Suddenly Marinette's phone started ringing with the instrumental tune of It's Ladybug. She looked at the caller ID. It was Alya.

"Is your phone ringing?" Adrien asked.

"Yeah. Do you mind if...?" Marinette started to ask.

"It's alright. Answer it." Adrien said. Marinette answered it.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hey girl, where have you been?" Alya asked.

"I've been here at the park, talking to Adrien." Marinette answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Really? And how has that been working out?" Alya asked.

"Everything's fine." Marinette said. "And what have you been up to?"

"Creating flyers with Nino for the school's talent show." Alya answered. "It's Friday evening, auditions are on Wednesday."

"Really? That soon?" Marinette asked.

"Yeah, girl. Have you not been keeping up with school news?" Alya asked.

"I guess not." Marinette said.

"I gotta go. Good luck with Adrien." Alya said.

"Bye!" Marinette said, before hanging up.

"What was that all about?" Adrien asked.

"Alya's working flyers for a talent show." Marinette answered.

"Really? I had no idea." Adrien said.

"Maybe you could enter. I did once remember hearing Nino say that you play the piano." Marinette said.

"That is true. Although how would I get a piano on and off the stage?" Adrien asked.

"I'd be willing to assist you." Marinette said.

"Really?" Adrien asked. "That's great."


	5. A Broken Wand

Two days later, talent show auditions were going on. It was 12:20pm, and today was a half day, so school was over and many people were in line for auditions. Nino was the first to audition so they were able to get ahead of everyone in line. Alya and Nino carried the table with his DJ equipment.

"Remind me why I agreed to do this?" she asked him.

Juleka carried a trombone in her hands. Rose was dressed in a ballerina outfit and was right behind Juleka. Alix had her skates in hand along with several plates and sticks. Jean Duparc was with another guy in his grade, who helped him move a round table. Marinette was assisting Adrien in moving a keyboard piano to the backstage. He was going to go last. They pushed the piano past Mirelle, who was the very last student in line.

"Just a bit farther." Adrien said.

"How far is the stage?" Marinette asked.

"Not too much farther." Adrien answered as they passed Jukeka.

"Are you sure you can win this talent show?" Jean's friend asked.

"I have to at least try." Jean said. "The prize money will help my sister get out her debt." He looked at the ground. "If she can't pay up her fine within a week, she'll be stuck in prison for three to five years."

"That's messed up. But remember, the prize is only 250 euros." Jean's friend said.

"I know." Jean said. "But she only needs 150 more euros. I'll have 100 left that I can save for later. I just have to get this vanishing trick in the bag."

"You want to try it one more time?" Jean's friend asked.

"Ok, vanishing trick, take sixteen, or something..." Jean said. "And action." He got out a box and draped it with a purple silk-like cloth. He got out his magician's wand. "Abracadabra!" He taped his wand to the covered box, and it vanished. "Yes, I did it!"

"Uh, Jean..." Jean's friend said. He pointed to a white furred rabbit, who was getting away.

"Oh no, no, no..." Jean said, running after the rabbit. He bumped into Chloe and they both fell down. "Oh sorry."

"What are you doing, chasing down a rabbit? Rabbits are too fast, you'll never catch it." Chloe said. "What is this anyway, some 3rd grade magic show? Please, you'll never make it, not with a pathetic act like that." She walked away, laughing. Jean fell into despair. He clenched his fists and ran away.

"Jean!" Jean's friend called after him. Jean ignored him and ran as far away as possible.

"This is why I don't like Chloe." Marinette said.

Jean ran into the most deserted area of school; the principal's office. Jean immeditely started crying.

"Forgive me, Jade..." he said.

Meanwhile in Hawkmoth's lair, he sensed Jean's distress.

"A magician with a broken wand. Trying to create illusions. But these illusions will now be real." Hawk Moth said. A butterfly flew into his hand, and he empowered it with negative energy, then released it as he spun his cane. "Fly away my evil akuma, and give this magician real powers!"

The akuma flew away looking for it's target. Nino was in front of the judges, displaying his awesome DJ skills. The judges consisted of Mr. Damocles, Mrs. Bustier, and Mr. D'Argencourt. Mrs. Bustier held up a ten, Mr. Damocles held up a nine, and Mr. D'Argencourt held up a seven.

"Very interesting, Nino." Mr. Damocles said. "Next!" Juleka came onto the stage.

Back at Mr. Damocles's office, the akuma had found Jean. It entered through the window and touched Jean's wand. A purple mask formed around his eyes.

"Magician of Misfortune, I am Hawk Moth. I will give you the power to do any trick and make it really happen. In return, you must retrieve Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculouses and bring them to me." Hawk Moth said to Jean. "Do we have an agreement?"

"I'll show those people what a magician can really do. I'll do it!" Jean exclaimed. He was engulfed in purple and black smoke. The Magician of Misfortune had a hat with a black mask around his face. He wore a white blouse with a red bow tie, a black cape and black pants. His shoes were black and he gained a pack of cards.

Meanwhile the auditions continued with Alix on her rollerblades, spinning plates with both her hands and her head. Each of the judges gave her a ten.

"Well done. Next should be Jean Duparc." Mr. Damocles said. The Magician of Misfortune appeared.

"It's Magician of Misfortune now. I have no tricks for you unfortunately, but I do have a number of surprises." he said. He pulled out a cloth from under his cape, set it on fire and threw it at Alix's skates. The stage burned and the judges ran away.

"Ahh!" she screamed. She slipped and fell on the ground. She felt unbearable pain in her ankle. "AHH!"

The scream could be heard throughout the school. Sabrina, Max, Mylene and a number of other students covered their ears. Chloe and Kim stopped in their tracks, but the former just shrugged it off and continued walking away. Several students were worried.

"What was that?" someone asked.

Adrien and Marinette, who were waiting outside the auditorium, looked very scared.

"Was that...?" Marinette started to ask.

"Alix!" Kim explained.

They ran to the auditorium stage entrance, but when they got there, the stage had been burned to ashes and Alix was lying helpless on the ground. The trio gasped in horror. Kim rushed to her side.

"Alix, what happened?" Kim asked.


	6. Vanishing Act

Alix looked up. "Kim?" He nodded. "I was auditioning for the talent show, then someone named Magician of Misfortune showed up when Jean Duparc was supposed to be here. The magician attacked me and burned the stage."

"Can you stand up?" Adrien asked.

"The impact of the fall broke my ankle." Alix said.

"Where did this Magician of Misfortune go?" Marinette asked.

"I don't know. He vanished in a puff of smoke." Alix answered.

"Kim, call an ambulance, I'll see to it that the Magician doesn't hurt anyone else." Marinette ordered. Then she ran off. Adrien also ran out as Kim called an emergency number. The students were scared.

"What's going on?" a student asked.

"Someone's been akumatized." Adrien answered.

"But where did they go?" another student asked.

"I don't know." Adrien answered. "And that's what scares me." He heard a scream. "Chloe!"

"Somebody help me!" Chloe screamed.

He saw her tied up several floors above him. He hid behind a bookcase in the deserted library. "Plagg, claws out!" Plagg transformed Adrien into Cat Noir. Meanwhile, Marinette ran into the nearest empty classroom.

"Tikki, spots on!" Marinette exclaimed. Tikki transformed Marinette into Ladybug.

By the time Cat Noir got to where Chloe was tied up, she was gone.

"I don't get it. Where did she go?" Cat Noir said. "She couldn't of just vanished into thin air!"

Ladybug appeared. "How are we gonna catch this Magician of Misfortune we don't know where he is or what he looks like?" she asked.

"What does that Magician even want anyway?" Cat Noir asked. "That's what I don't get."

"I think that the Magician is Jean Duparc!" Ladybug exclaimed.

"If that's the case, then where could he have gone?" Cat Noir asked.

Juleka was sitting near the steps listening to a news broadcast. Ladybug and Cat Noir looked at her smartphone. "It appears that a new villain called the Magician of Misfortune has appeared in Paris." Nadja Chamack said in a news broadcast. "Not much is known about him, but he is highly dangerous and is rumored to have seriously injured a student from College Francoise Dupont. According to one of his victims, he wants to make the Eiffel Tower vanish in a puff of smoke." They showed an image of the Magician of Misfortune walking down the streets of Paris, holding a bunny rabbit in a cage. It was raining heavily.

"At least we know what he looks like." Cat Noir said.

"And where he's going." Ladybug added. "We got no time to lose!"

The superhero duo rushed off. Cat Noir and Ladybug saw the Magician of Misfortune close to Eiffel Tower. Then they got a closer look at the bunny. The bunny had white fur and was wearing a golden necklace with a blue gem on it.

"You're gonna pay for this!" a familiar voice screamed. That rabbit was Chloe!

"Chloe?" Cat Noir asked.

"He turned her into a rabbit?" Ladybug asked.

The akuma mask appeared on the Magician of Misfortune's face.

"Well done, Magician of Misfortune." Hawk Moth congratulated. "You've shown everyone what a real magician can do. But now it's time to fulfill the agreement."

"Those two don't know what's coming." Magician of Misfortune said. The mask vanished.

"Somebody help me!" Chloe screamed.

"We gotta stop him." Ladybug said.

"But how?" Cat Noir asked.

For a moment, Ladybug saw Adrien's face instead of Cat Noir's but she reminded herself to focus.

"I got an idea." she answered.

"You're gonna pay for this, you mysterious magician!" Chloe screamed.

"Who's to stop me?" the Magician of Misfortune asked.

"We will." Ladybug said. The Magician of Misfortune gasped and dropped the cage with Chloe in it. She ran out, hiding behind the heroes. "Why are you doing this?"

"Chloe's cruel and selfish. She mocked me, it's her fault that my rabbit got away, and she deserves to disappear forever!" he exclaimed. He got his wand and pointed it at the superhero duo. The wand shot big balls of fire at them, which they barely dodged. He pulled out a bunch of rabbits from his hat. "Get them and their Miraculouses!"

The rabbits attacked the superheroes and the rabbit that was Chloe. Cat Noir fended them off with his staff. The other rabbits started attacking Chloe, hurting her.

"Cat Noir, take the innocent white rabbit and get her to a safe place!" Ladybug exclaimed.

"I have a name ya know!" Chloe exclaimed.

While Cat Noir defended himself and Chloe, Ladybug noticed the Magician of Misfortune about to make the Eiffel Tower disappear. He got out a very big purple cloak. "Lucky Charm!" she said, using her power. She conjured an egg carton. "An egg carton? What do I do with this?"

"Is that the only trick up your sleeve?" the Magician of Misfortune asked.

Ladybug looked around. She saw a few kids playing baseball nearby the Eiffel Tower when they really shouldn't have been there, Cat Noir spinning his staff, a car's windshield wipers moving up and down rapidly, and the Magician of Misfortune. She knew what to do.

"Heads up!" she yelled to the kid with the bat. She threw the egg carton towards him, and he hit it with the bat, then Cat Noir hit it towards the the car and the wipers from the car caused the Magician of Misfortune to be knocked down with the egg carton opening splattering eggs all over the back of his head. The egg carton landed on top of his head and covered his eyes. While he was stunned, Ladybug ran over to him and grabbed his wand. When he got the egg carton off his face, he saw Ladybug break his wand. He gasped in terror as she did this. The akuma was released from the broken wand.

"No more evil doing for you evil akuma!" Ladybug said, activating her yoyo. "Time to de-evilize!" She caught the akuma. "Gotcha!" The akuma was turned back into a harmless butterfly. "Bye bye, little butterfly." The butterfly flew away and the egg carton appeared back in her hands. "Miraculous Ladybug!" She tossed it into the air. The stage was restored, Chloe turned back into a human and the Magician of Misfortune turned back into Jean Duparc.

"What... what am I doing here?" Jean asked.

"Pound it!" Cat Noir and Ladybug said in unison.

"You may have broken his wand, but it is you that will be broken when I take your Miraculous!" Hawkmoth declared.

The window to his lair closed, leaving him alone in the darkness.


	7. Poor Unfortunate Souls

Author's Notes: I realize I'm posting this on Christmas Day. For those of you celebrating it, Merry Christmas! If not, then Happy Holidays!

Hawkmoth had just been defeated once again.

"My Lady, do you remember what I told you when we faced Dark Cupid?" Cat Noir asked.

"How could I forget?" Ladybug asked, before swinging away on her yoyo.

Cat Noir's ears dropped. About five minutes later, Adrien was back in his room. He got out the list of possible girls who could be Ladybug. He crossed out Juleka. The list now looked like this;

Mylene

Rose

Marinette

Plagg noticed Adrien marking out Juleka. "And then there were three." he said. "How did you determine that Juleka wasn't Ladybug?"

"Both Juleka and Ladybug are brave, and aren't afraid of anything. But while me and Ladybug were trying to figure out what exactly we were up against, we saw Juleka watching a news broadcast with her phone." Adrien answered. "Then we figured out we were facing the Magician of Misfortune, stopped him, and saved the day. If only Ladybug stayed a little longer..."

"You think you'll find out Ladybug's identity from the akuma attacks?" Plagg asked.

"Eventually, yes." Adrien answered. "Hopefully it won't be necessary."

The next day, Marinette, Alya and Adrien were in the courtyard. Alix was carried around on Kim's shoulder. Kim was not pleased, while Alix smirked.

"Um...Alix, why are you on top of Kim's shoulder?" Marinette asked. "Did your father not get any crutches or a wheelchair for you and your broken ankle?"

"I'm gonna be interrogated on this a lot." Alix said. She passed a piece of paper to Kim, who then passed it to Marinette.

"By signing this, I agree that I, Le Chien Kim, will assist Alix Kubdel in times of hardship if she wins the race. (Examples of hardship: Broken bone, relative being hurt, et cetera). This contract lasts until we graduate from College Francois Dupont." Marinette read.

"So, he's basically assisting you until your injury heals?" Adrien asked.

"Pretty much." Alix answered. Kim sighed.

"Don't worry, Kim. It could be worse." Alya said.

"How?" Kim asked.

"You could actually have a broken ankle." Alix answered. "Which reminds me, how am I going to do that spinning plate act like this?"

"You'll find a way." Marinette said. "Don't let anything stop you."

"By the way, what about all of the other people who couldn't audition today because of yesterday's akuma attack?" Adrien asked.

"Everyone who didn't audition yesterday will audition today after school." Alya answered.

Later that day, Adrien was playing the piano in front of the judges. He played Fur Elise, which was rather complicated. The judges each gave him a ten.

"Wow. I must say that I'm impressed. Who know that you could play piano as well as fence?" Mr. D'Argencourt asked.

"I also speak Chinese." Adrien said.

"Is there anything you can't do?" he asked.

Adrien nervously smiled. Marinette meet up with him in the courtyard.

"That was amazing. I never knew how talented you were when it came to playing the piano." Marinette said.

"You really think so?" Adrien asked.

"I'd say so." Marinette said. "You seriously have a good chance of winning."

"There are a lot of talented people in this talent show. Jean, Mirelle, Nino..."

Jean turned away. "Is something wrong?" Marinette answered.

"I don't wanna talk about it." Jean answered.

"Talking about it might help you feel better." Marinette said. "And I don't want to see you get akumatized again." Jean hanged his head in sorrow. "What's the matter?"

Jean sighed. "The judges banned me from the talent show. I can't participate this year because something happened while I was under evil influence. I remember being akumatized, but I don't remember what happened during this time." he answered. "What did I do, aside from turning Chloe into a rabbit?"

"I hate to break it to you, but, when you became the Magician of Misfortune, you somehow caused Alix to fall and break her ankle." Marinette answered.

"I...I did that?!" Jean asked. "Oh man, I remember now! What the heck was I thinking?!" He sighed. "So much for getting Jade out of jail..." He walked away in sorrow.

"Poor guy..." Adrien said.

"I wish I knew how to help him." Marinette said.

"Say, don't we have to be at Mrs. Bustier's class in five minutes?" Adrien asked.

"You're right! Let's move!" Marinette exclaimed.

She grabbed Adrien's hand and ran so fast that she didn't notice the sound of a bracelet falling to the ground.


	8. The Show Must Go On

Friday evening, the talent show had begun. First up was Nino, was displaying his skills as a DJ. The audience clapped after his performance. The judges took notes on their clipboards. Next, Juleka played Can-Can on the trombone. The crowd went wild.

"Wow, she's impressive." Marinette heard someone say.

Then Rose danced to the dance of the sugar plum fairies from the Nutcracker. Two more performances later, Alix was carried onto the stage by Kim.

"Hello people of College Francois Dupont." Alix greeted the audience. "Now, normally, I would be skating around while I do this, but due to unfortunate occurrences, my ankle was broken. Therefore my assistant, Kim, will assist me as necessary." While she spoke, Kim put a few stones on the stage, and Alix gently set her broken ankle on it without putting any weight on it. Alix's right foot had a skate on it, and she stood on it while balancing plates on her head and with her hands. She did this for one minute. Much to everyone's surprise, she did not fall nor injure herself. The audience clapped and cheered.

"I'm not sure what's more impressive; Alix's plate spinning with one leg, or the fact that she's doing it with a broken ankle and that she hasn't hurt herself." Alya remarked.

Next up was Aurore, who danced to multiple different pieces of music. She was fast yet slow, going at an incredible speed with beauty and grace.

"Oh no... Oh no, no, no..." Marinette whispered while the seventh performer did the act of juggling. "Don't tell me I lost it!" she muttered to herself.

Meanwhile, Chloe and Sabrina were outside the auditorium.

"Remind me why we're here if Adrien and Marinette are watching the talent show?" Sabrina asked.

"I thought I saw Marinette and Adrien over here the other day." Chloe answered. She notices something out the corner of her eye. "What is this?"

Chloe picked up a charm bracelet. The bracelet was made from red string, with eight different beads on it; a light blue bead, a sky-blue bead, a small black bead, a tiny red bead, two large pink beads, a yellow bead and a square green bead with a five petal flower engraving on it.

"It's Marinette's lucky charm!" Sabrina exclaimed.

"Really?" Chloe asked. "Wait a second. How do you know this?"

"I saw Marinette showing the bracelet to Alya once." Sabrina answered.

"And why didn't you tell me this earlier?" Chloe asked.

"You didn't ask." Sabrina answered. "Also, I thought you wouldn't be interested in it."

"Hmm... Perhaps we can use this to our advantage." Chloe said. She put it in her purse. "We'll figure out what to do with it later. Let's get back to the auditorium before somebody notices something strange."

Back at the auditorium, Mirelle had just finished singing La Vie en Rose by Edith Palif. Finally, Adrien came on stage after Kim and Nino moved a piano onto the stage. Adrien was playing Fur Elise on the piano. At the end of his song, the audience clapped.

"Thank you for coming to College Francois Dupont's fifth annual talent show competition. The winner will be determined shortly." Mr. Damocles announced.

About five minutes passed, and the performers made their way to the stage. The three judges also made their way to the stage. The lights went down and the spotlight turned on.

"Alright. The third place winner of the talent show competition is..." Mr. D'Argencourt said as the spotlight moved around. "Mirelle!" She gasped. She never expected to win third place. Mr. Argencourt left the stage.

"The second place winner of the competition is none other than..." Mrs. Bustier began to say. "Alix!"

Alix and Kim smiled. Alix thought that if her ankle wasn't broken that she would have most likely won first place.

"And last but not least, we have our first place winner." Mr. Damocles said. "The winner of the talent competition is none other than..." He kept the audience on the edge of their seats. "Adrien Agreste!"

Adrien gasped then smiled. He won! Marinette and a bunch of Adrien's fangirls screamed loudly as the audience clapped. After the winners received their prizes, Adrien found Jean, who was still sulking, outside the auditorium near the box office.

"Hey Jean." Adrien said. "I know you're pretty bummed about not being able to enter the competition." He handed an envelope to Jean. "Take it. It's the money I won from the competition. I entered this talent show for fun. You need the money more than I do."

"Thank you Adrien. You're really kind." Jean said. "Please allow me to do a tarot reading for you."

"Um, okay." he said.

Jean took out a deck of tarot cards. He showed the cards to Adrien and he chose three of them. He pulled out the Hermit, a reversed Justice, and a Tower card.

"This spells out trouble." Jean predicted. "You or someone close to you will be wrongly blamed, and disaster will strike. You will have to face this disaster alone, and you may discover a surprising revelation."

"That doesn't sound good." Adrien said.

"Unfortunately, it doesn't." Jean said. "I thought you would receive good news." Jean sighed.

Back at Le Grand Paris, Chloe was in her room. She wore the charm bracelet on her right wrist. She pulled on a pair of yellow dress gloves which covered the bracelet, but the design of the bracelet could still be seen. She put on a silver bracelet with blue sapphire gems embedded in it. Nobody could tell she was wearing Marinette's lucky charm bracelet under it.

"Perfect." Chloe said. "Better watch out Marinette, cause you're gonna get what's coming to you!"


	9. Horrificator

The following day was another half-day at school. Chloe got a lot of compliments on her gloves, while Nathaniel and Alya were suspicious. Once the day was over, Marinette and Adrien were sipping on hot chocolate at a cafe. It wasn't really a date per-say, but many people would assume it to be just that.

"So you really aren't a spoiled little rich boy?" Marinette asked, sipping on hot chocolate.

"Yeah. Some people assume that I'm the luckiest guy ever." Adrien answered. "But this the exact opposite of true."

"You must really enjoy this normal life. Or however normal life can be." Marinette said.

After they finished their hot chocolate and macaroons, Marinette went back to the Notre Dame.

"I understand everything." Marinette said. "The only time Adrien is lucky, and can act like he really wants to... is when he's Cat Noir. Everything makes sense."

"With this information, you must now ask yourself this question," Tikki said. "Will you reveal yourself to him or confess your love to him as Marinette?"

"I'm not sure." Marinette said.

Later on, the students were asked to be a part of a short horror film called Horrificator. Rose was supposed to be the one handling the snacks for the crew, but unfortunately, she had the flu and had to stay home while the rest of the class worked on the film. After Mylene ran away (courtesy of Chloe), the others were not pleased. Nino glared at her.

"Epic, Chloe, just epic!" he sarcastically exclaimed. "What are we supposed to do without our leading actress?"

"Who needs her anyway?" Chloe asked. "She was totally lame."

"You're lame! Mylene's crying her eyes out in the bathroom thanks to you!" Ivan exclaimed.

"Me, lame?!" Chloe asked.

There were several arguments that day.

"You haven't even read the script!" Alya exclaimed.

"Of course I have. The first scene anyway. I can even tell you it ends with a kiss between Agent Smith and Officer Jones." Chloe retaliated.

Adrien was surprised but was able to conceal it rather well.

 _You're kidding right? Please tell me that she's kidding._ He thought.

After Marinette left to find Mylene, Juleka reapplied the blush on his cheeks. Adrien sighed softly. He did not want to do this. He was never interested in Chloe's affections for him because she stuck to him like glue, but he knew it was also just an act. Sabrina set up the clapperboard. Alix was in charge of the boom mic, and as usual, she was on top of Kim's shoulders. Kim handled the lighting. Nathaniel and Alya looked at the bracelet on Chloe's wrist.

 _Why was she wearing the bracelet over one of her gloves?_ they thought.

"Horrificator, take 15." Sabrina said.

"And action!" Nino exclaimed.

"I'm not scared of that horrificator-thingy, Officer What-your name is, now kiss me!" Chloe said.

He tried to back away. Marinette entered the room. "Cut!" she yelled.

 _Thank you, Marinette!_ Adrien thought.

"Marinette, what gives?" Nino asked.

After another argument, Juleka reapplied blush to Adrien for the umpteenth time that day. Marinette suggested to Chloe that Agent Smith would become a nurse instead, and she and Sabrina left the room. Juleka was now in charge of the clapperboard. As Marinette and Adrien were in place, Alya smiled.

"Horrificator, take 16." Juleka said.

"Action!" Nino exclaimed.

"I'm not scared of that monster, Officer Jones." Marinette said.

She leaned in to kiss Adrien. Adrien just started thinking of her as more than just a friend, but he wasn't sure how he felt. They weren't a romantic couple, yet they were more than just friends.

 _What were we?_ Adrien thought.

He closed his eyes and waited for her kiss. The door swung open, revealing Chloe and Sabrina.

"Cut!" Chloe shrieked. "I knew it!"

 _Really, Chloe? Really?!_ Adrien thought to himself.

Nino stopped the recording. "What did I say about other people saying cut?!" he asked.

After a crazy escapade, there were only a few students who hadn't been captured by Horrificator; Marinette (as Ladybug), Adrien (as Cat Noir), Kim, Juleka, Nino, Rose (because she was sick), and Ivan.

"Did you see it just left Ivan alone?" Ladybug asked.

"Yeah. What's that all about?" Cat Noir asked.

Ladybug gasped. "I think the monster.. is Mylene!" she answered.

The remaining students ran over to the superhero duo.

"Hey, where are Chloe and Sabrina?" Kim asked.

Ladybug and Cat Noir managed to stop Horrificator (who was Mylene) and saved the day once again. Later on, Mr. Damocles, Nino, Alya, Marinette and Adrien were outside City Hall.

"We didn't make the cut! He said the monster was a horrible replica completely unbelievable! No joke!" Nino exclaimed.

"Don't worry, bud. This is how all good movie directors start out." Adrien said, reassuring his friend.

After going out for ice cream with his three friends, Adrien was back in his room and got out the list again. He crossed out Mylene. The list now looked like this;

Rose

Marinette

"So we've narrowed it down to Rose and Marinette. Who's the lucky lady?" Plagg asked.

"I don't know, but I'm very close to finding out." Adrien said.

He looked out the window. He thought of Marinette. He was confused. Did she like him? Was she in love with him? And why did he feel so drawn to her? He had confided to Marinette even more than what he told Chloe. He trusted her, he desired her, he needed her. Why was his heart pulling him in two different directions? He had always loved Ladybug. Or was his heart trying to tell him something that he didn't know?


	10. One Little Lie

Several days later, it was Thursday and it had been nearly two weeks since Marinette discovered who Cat Noir was.

"You're gonna do it?" Tikki asked.

"He deserves to know the truth." Marinette asked.

She handed a letter to Adrien as she walked into the classroom. Adrien mentally read the letter.

 _Dear Adrien._

 _I have something that I must tell you. It's important. Meet me by the Eiffel Tower after school at three o'clock._

 _Your friend, Marinette._

Adrien wondered what she had to say to him. The Eiffel Tower was deserted, much to Marinette's delight. Unbeknownst to her, Sabrina was following her (on Chloe's orders), and Chloe was following Adrien.

"You're really going to tell him?" Tikki asked, poking her head out from Marinette's bag.

"There's no going back now." Marinette answered. Tikki hid back in Marinette's bag as Adrien (as well as Sabrina and Chloe) arrived.

Sabrina and Chloe were behind Marinette and Adrien respectively, listening in on their conversation.

"Is there something you wanted to tell me?" Adrien asked.

"Yes. Adrien..." she started to say, before hearing a loud vibration. "Hold on... I think someone's watching us."

Sabrina's phone was vibrating because her father was trying to call her. Chloe put her hand to her forehead.

"I know you're hiding, wherever you are! So come out! Or I will find you!" Marinette exclaimed.

Sabrina tried to ran away, but she tripped and fell on the ground right in front of Marinette and Adrien.

"Sabrina, why are you following us?!" Marinette asked.

"Chloe made me do it!" Sabrina exclaimed. "She's been following Adrien as well!"

"Sabrina, you idiot!" Chloe screamed from behind the Eiffel Tower. She sighed and revealed herself. "Look, I know you guys are up to something. So what the heck is going on here?"

"Seriously, Chloe? What the heck are you talking about?" Adrien asked. "Are you jealous?"

"I am not jealous!" Chloe answered angrily. "I know you guys have been fooling around. Your absent from class part of the time, you're constantly making excuses for yourselves, and both of you disappeared from class sometime after Roger was fired. Tell me the truth. What is going on?!"

Adrien was stunned. He couldn't tell Chloe, Sabrina or Marinette that he was a superhero. Marinette also knew that she couldn't reveal the truth, but she quickly came up with another plan.

"You want the truth?" Marinette asked. "Fine then. Here's the truth!" Marinette passionately kissed Adrien. Chloe gasped as Sabrina and Adrien widened their eyes in shock. Not knowing what to do, Adrien just went along with it by closing his eyes and kissing her. Chloe ran away and so did Sabrina.

"Is she gone?" Adrien asked. They looked around and breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally. I thought she'd never leave. Marinette, were you lying just to get Chloe off our backs or do you actually like me?"

"I...I...Does it matter?" Marinette asked.

"Or do you just wanna kiss me again?" Adrien asked.

"Huh?" she asked.

He kissed her, and she kissed him back. He wrapped his arms around her waist and she circled her arms around his neck. Even if it was a lie, Marinette loved it. They backed away after a few seconds. The two smiled at each other. Adrien's phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered. "Okay. I'm at the Eiffel Tower. Okay, goodbye." He hung up. "That was Nathalie. It's time for another photoshoot."

"How long until she gets there?" Marinette asked.

"Less than a minute." Adrien answered. "Is there something you wanted to say to me?"

"Adrien, I, I love you..." Marinette said. "And I know that..." The car pulled up.

"Come on, Adrien." Nathalie said. "We're already late."

"I'm sorry, Marinette. I have to go. I'll see you around." Adrien said, getting into the car. Marinette watched him disappear. She looked away in despair.

Meanwhile Chloe was at the Trocadero all alone, hiding herself from view behind a white pillar.

"She's been doing this all along?!" Chloe asked. "How could I have not noticed this earlier?! She doesn't deserve him! I do!" She growled and kicked a rock, creating a crack in the pillar.

Hawkmoth sensed Chloe's anger and envy.

"Angry because of love and lies, oh yes! I love it! My little akumas will feast upon her anger." Hawkmoth said. "Fly away my little akuma, and evilize her!" The akuma flew off, looking for it's target. Chloe was ripping up flowers, thinking of how much she wanted to destroy Marinette. The akuma entered her bracelet. A purple light mask formed around her eyes.

"Cleopatra, I am Hawkmoth." he greeted. "I can give you the power to destroy your foes and win the heart of the one you love. All I ask is that you retrieve Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculouses."

"Those Miraculouses, and Adrien's heart, are as good as mine!" Chloe declared.

Chloe was engulfed in purple and black smoke, turning into Cleopatra. Her gloves were gone, but the two bracelets she wore were still there. She donned a long white dress and her hair turned black and was loose. She wore large golden earrings and a gold and jeweled choker around her neck. On top of her head was a golden band with red gems and a snake head on it. She felt magic coursing through her veins. She felt powerful and invincible. Cleopatra smirked.

"Chloe?" Sabrina asked. "Are you here?"

"The name's Cleopatra now. You are my right hand woman. You will bow before me." Cleopatra spoke.

Sabrina bowed down not in respect for her new authority, but out of fear.

"What is your command, Queen Cleopatra?" Sabrina asked.

"We're going to gather an army, steal Adrien's heart with my love magic, and then, we will kill Marinette." Cleopatra answered.

Sabrina nearly choked. "What?!"


	11. Confronting Cleopatra

Marinette was at the school's library. Having just finished her paper for English, she started thinking about Adrien. He loved her as Ladybug, and she loved him as Adrien and Cat Noir. Neither of them had stated how they truly felt.

 _If only I could have told him the..._

She heard screams.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Aurore approached her, and her eyes were glowing green. Marinette gasped in horror. She and Mirelle (who's eyes were also glowing) tried to grab Marinette, but she kicked them down and ran out into the courtyard. Mrs. Bustier, Ms. Mendeleiev, and every other teacher was knocked unconscious. Alix was held in the air, trapped in a circle bind of white energy around her waist, arms and legs. Kim, Nathaniel, Mylene, Rose, Juleka, Alya, Max, Ivan and Nino eyes were all glowing green.

"Alya?! Nathaniel?!" she asked.

A woman in a white dress entered the courtyard. This was Cleopatra and she had several students under her control. Marinette looked at Sabrina. Her eyes weren't glowing. Sabrina was helping Cleopatra of her own free will! Marinette gasped.

 _How could she willingly assist an akumatized villain?_ she thought. Then she took a closer look at Cleopatra and her blood turned to ice.

"Chloe?" Marinette asked.

"It's Cleopatra now. Queen Cleopatra. You are being charged with reason. Servants, get her!" Cleopatra ordered.

The servants charged towards her, but she ran away. Marinette could feel her heart pounding as she tried to get away.

 _Treason? What have I done? Why is she mad at me?_ Marinette thought.

She eventually realized that Chloe (or Cleopatra) was envious because she thought Marinette and Adrien were in a romantic relationship.

 _Why did I lie to Chloe about being romantically involved with Adrien when it was a lie?_ She thought. Was _it just to get Chloe off our backs and prevent her from discovering our secrets? Did I just want to make Chloe jealous? Or was it because I love him?_

She ran onto the streets on Paris, but Cleopatra's servants still relentlessly pursued her.

"Run, Marinette! Run like the wind!" Alix exclaimed. The bind tightened. Alix moaned in pain.

"What are you gonna do with her?" Sabrina asked.

"She's useless to us with that broken ankle. I have no reason to kill her, so I'll just leave her here. If she dies alone, it's not my problem." Cleopatra answered. She let Alix fall to the ground. She screamed in pain. Cleopatra formed golden wings on her back for her to fly. "Come Sabrina, we have a traitor to catch!"

Sabrina did as Cleopatra commanded. Meanwhile, Adrien was looking at the list. He loved Ladybug, yet he loved Marinette. Who was he going to choose? Adrien heard the advice of following one's heart, but what happens when your heart pulls you in two different directions? He heard a loud scream.

"What the?" Adrien asked. He saw Marinette running past the Agreste Mansion. "What's going on?!" He saw Cleopatra flying with the golden wings she gave herself and gasped. "Plagg, claws out!" Adrien exclaimed.

Plagg unwillingly transformed Adrien into Cat Noir. Meanwhile Cleopatra still pursued Marinette. She threw a ball of green energy to the ground, creating an earthquake. Marinette collapsed to the ground. She got up as Cleopatra and Sabrina found her.

"You have no where to run!" Cleopatra exclaimed. "Grab her!" Alya and Nathaniel grabbed her and then Sabrina tied her up with rope. "Quickly, to Le Grand Paris!"

"Cat Noir, help me!" Marinette screamed.

Cat Noir's blood turned to ice. He was too late. Marinette had been captured by Cleopatra and her servants. She was being dragged away to meet her demise at the hands of Cleopatra. He saw how powerful Cleopatra was. He was scared to face her alone. Cat Noir called Ladybug using his staff as a phone, but she didn't pick up.

 _Why isn't she answering?_ Cat Noir thought.

He thought back to the tarot cards.

"You will have to face this disaster alone, and you may discover a surprising revelation." Jean predicted.

Jean was right about being all alone, but what was he talking about by revelation? He ran after Cleopatra. Why was Cleopatra so against Marinette? He realized that Chloe had been akumatized. He then thought of his kisses with Marinette, and him kissing Ladybug as Cat Noir (which Ladybug didn't even remember). He loved Ladybug, as well as Marinette. He realized that Marinette was Ladybug, and that she loved him as Adrien. She was trying to tell him that she knew he was Cat Noir! He had to save her! He got to Le Grand Paris and saw a big fire on top of the roof. The water had been replaced with fire!

"Let go of me!" Marinette commanded.

"Shut up, you backstabber!" Cleopatra exclaimed. "Adrien won't be yours anymore!"

Cat Noir quickly climbed up the roof. He had to bite his tongue to prevent himself from gasping in terror. Marinette was tied over a pool of fire. Cleopatra's wings were gone, and soon Marinette would be if Cat didn't do something.

"Alya, cut the rope!" Cleopatra exclaimed. "This traitor will burn!"

She did as she was told. Before she could cut the rope, Cat Noir threw his staff at Alya, making her drop her knife into the fiery pit below.

"Don't you dare touch her!" Cat Noir exclaimed.

"You little pest! Get his Miraculous!" Cleopatra ordered. "His ring!"

Her servants went after him. He fended them off with his staff. Sabrina stayed still.

 _How can I willingly assist an akumatized villain? Even if she is my best and only friend, I can't let her go through with this!_ Sabrina thought. She recalled the lucky charm that Chloe had found. Without any warning, Sabrina ran towards Cleopatra and grabbed her wrist.

"Sabrina, what are you doing?!" Cleopatra asked in anger.

She grabbed the lucky charm from her wrist and threw it to over to Cat Noir. He caught it and then defeated all of her servants. Shortly after this, he was blasted into the wall by a beam of golden energy.

"You know the old saying, Cleopatra." she said. "If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself!" She put a red cage around Sabrina. "I will deal with you later." She threw a ball of purple energy at Sabrina, knocking her out. Then she turned to Chat Noir. "Your days are numbered."

"That's what you think!" Cat Noir said.


	12. The Wrath of Cleopatra

Cat Noir charged towards Cleopatra, but she dodged his every move. She threw green balls of energy at him, but he dodged them. Normally, he would have smirked while fighting an akumatized villain, but he didn't because of what was on the line. She threw an ice beam at him, freezing his right wrist to the wall. He split his staff into two, he threw one piece at Chloe to stun her and then used the other part of his staff to break away the ice and free himself. He retrieved the other piece of his staff, connected the pieces of his staff, and tripped Cleopatra with his staff by sweeping it under her feet.

"You're a clever little kitty, but not quite clever enough!" Cleopatra exclaimed.

She threw several balls of energy at him, all being blue, but he swiftly dodged them all. He glared at her. Then she started to throw fireballs at him. He dodged them all in the roof of Le Grand Paris caught fire.

"Oh crud..." he muttered under his breath, barely dodging all the flames.

"What's the matter, kitty? Scared of fire?" Cleopatra asked. A purple mask formed around Cleopatra's eyes.

"Get his Miraculous!" Hawkmoth ordered. "Grab his ring!"

"You have no chance against me, Cat Noir! You're powerless without Ladybug!" Cleopatra said, throwing a ball of blue energy at him. He got hit by it and his head started spinning.

 _Is she right?_ Cat Noir asked himself. _Ladybug's always purifying the akumas..._

He soon realized that the fire was burning the very pole that Marinette was tied to. The rope also began to tear.

"Say goodnight, Marinette!" Cleopatra exclaimed.

Cleopatra threw a ball of black energy at the rope and it snapped. Marinette started to scream as she fell.

"Princess!" he screamed.

He ran towards her while dodging Cleopatra's attacks and caught Marinette in his arms. He started jumping from rooftop to rooftop, trying to get as far away from Cleopatra as possible. He eventually got to the Notre Dame, ran into the cathedral and quickly shut the doors with his foot.

"That was too close." Cat Noir said.

"No kidding..." Marinette said. "Adrien..."

"Oh Bugaboo..." he said. "I love you, Marinette."

He kissed her. She put her arms around his neck.

"Cat..." Marinette said. "I never meant to lie to you. I love you."

"Cleopatra wants our Miraculouses." Cat Noir said, setting her on the ground. "And she also wants you dead."

"She also wants to make you fall in love with her." Marinette added as she stood up.

"Do you think she'll find us here?" Cat Noir asked.

"I doubt it, but I don't want to stick around long enough to find out." Marinette answered. She opened her bag, revealing Tikki to Cat Noir. "Tikki, spots on!" Marinette transformed into Ladybug. "Okay, I noticed that while you were fighting Cleopatra, that her attacks were powerful. This may be our toughest challenge yet."

"So how do we stop her?" Cat Noir asked.

"I'm trying to think of a plan..." Ladybug answered.

Ladybug was not coming up with any ideas. She only had one idea, and she did not like it. Meanwhile, Cleopatra extinguished the fire on the roof of Le Grand Paris.

"What the?" she asked. She noticed that Cat Noir and Marinette were gone. Her servants were unconscious yet unharmed. "Where did they go?!"

The purple mask around Cleopatra's eyes formed again.

"If you want to destroy Marinette, bring me Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculouses!" Hawkmoth ordered.

Cleopatra gave herself the golden wings and began to fly around Paris, searching for the superhero duo.

Meanwhile, Adrien stood at Parc des Princes wearing a tuxedo. Ladybug stood nearby a soccer goal.

"Look, not that I don't trust you, but I honestly don't think this is a good idea." Adrien said.

"I don't like this idea either, but I don't have any better plans." she responded.

"Okay, now where's the akuma hiding?" he asked.

"It's probably in that silver bracelet around her wrist." Ladybug answered. "Do you remember the plan?"

"Perfectly, my lady." Adrien said. He heard something. "Hide, quickly!"

Ladybug hid herself from sight as Cleopatra landed on the ground. The sorceress saw Adrien.

"Adrien?" she asked.

"Hello Chloe. I mean, Queen Cleopatra." he said.

He walked up to her, and held her hand. He knew what his goal was; to get that bracelet off of her wrist. Unfortunately, he had to trick Chloe by flirting with her.

"Adrien, my love. I've desired you for a long time. How would you like to be my king?" Cleopatra asked, conjuring a golden ring out of thin air.

Adrien didn't answer. He grabbed the bracelet, and ran away with it. "Now Ladybug!" he exclaimed.

Ladybug tied up Cleopatra in her yo-yo. She gasped seeing Adrien with Ladybug.

"Adrien?! How could you do this?!" Cleopatra asked in anger. She glowed with orange energy. "Either way, you will love me, even if I must force you to!"

Her body was surrounded by fire, which quickly caused the heat to spread to Ladybug. She dropped her yoyo and Cleopatra started firing blue beams of energy at her.


	13. Love and Light

Ladybug was knocked down. After firing beams at Ladybug, Cleopatra used telekinesis and retrieved her bracelet. The duo's plan had been foiled.

"You're gonna pay Ladybug!" she screamed.

Things were not looking very good for our heroes. Cleopatra throw fireballs at Ladybug, which she barely dodged. Adrien managed to slip away and transform into Cat Noir. He knocked Cleopatra into a goal with his staff.

"It's about time you showed up kitty." Ladybug said.

"I would have been here sooner, but this witch cast a sleep spell on me and I unwittingly took a cat nap." Cat Noir lied.

They barely dodged a red energy attack. Then she held her arms up in a V shape, and summoned a steel sword in a beam of white light. She held the sword in both her hands.

"She can summon weapons?!" Ladybug asked.

"What can't she do?" Cat Noir asked.

"You guys are toast!" Cleopatra exclaimed.

She charged forward and Cat Noir tried to counter her every attack. Ladybug used her yoyo to pull the sword away from Cleopatra, but this backfired when the used the sword to trip up Ladybug. She fell on her stomach and briefly glared at Cleopatra. Ladybug got up and used her yoyo to deflect some of Cleopatra's energy attacks, but she kept firing faster than Ladybug could spin her yoyo. The red and black masked superhero was knocked down. She got up and looked at Cat Noir and Cleopatra fighting with each other with their weapons.

"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug exclaimed. She conjured a hook. "A hook? How do I use this?"

She looked around. She saw her yoyo, Chloe's bracelet and her crown. She tied the rope of the yoyo around the hook, turning it into a makeshift fishing rod. She used the hook to knock Cleopatra's crown over her eyes.

"Now Cat Noir!" she exclaimed.

"Cataclysm!" Cat Noir exclaimed, summoning his power.

He tried to use his power on Cleopatra's bracelet, but she grabbed his wrist and flung him onto the ground. She quickly created wings for herself and flew up as Cat Noir's palm hit the ground, creating an earthquake. Ladybug fell to her knees. Her head spun. Cat Noir's ring beeped, signaling that he had four minutes left before changing back. Cleopatra looked down on Cat Noir. A purple light mask formed around her eyes.

"Take his Miraculous, while he's stunned!" Hawkmoth ordered.

Cleopatra flew down to him and grabbed his wrist. She took off the ring and Cat Noir unwillingly detransformed into Adrien. He knelt on the ground in sadness. He had lost his Miraculous. Cleopatra saw him, gasped and dropped the ring.

"Adrien?" she asked.

All of Cleopatra's rage turned to guilt. Ladybug used the hook to grab Cleopatra's bracelet while she was distracted. She smashed it by throwing it to the ground, releasing the akuma. "No more evil doing for you little akuma. Time to deevilize!" She got the akuma. "Gotcha!" She released the purified akuma. "Bye bye little butterfly." The hook reappeared back in her hands. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

Everything was turned back to normal. Adrien retrieved his ring and hid from Chloe's sight. Ladybug disappeared as Cleopatra turned back into Chloe.

"What, what am I doing here?" Chloe asked.

She looked around, seeing nobody there. Later that evening, Adrien was in his bedroom, thinking about today's crazy events.

"Are you sure that Chloe won't remember that I'm Cat Noir?" Adrien asked Plagg.

"Yes. She was akumatized. I'm certain that she won't remember anything." Plagg said.

Adrien heard a tap on his window. He looked over and saw Ladybug there. He opened the window and she came in.

"Ladybug? What brings you here?" Adrien asked.

"I just came here to see you." she answered.

"So your masked sweetheart named Marinette is here?" Plagg asked.

"Is that a kwami?" Ladybug asked.

"His name is Plagg." Adrien answered. "With him I transform into Cat Noir. I believe your kwami is named Tikki, right?"

Ladybug detransformed into Marinette and answered, "That is correct."

Tikki appeared right in front of Plagg. "Plagg?" she asked.

"Tikki?" he asked. Plagg hugged her. "It's so good to see you. I was worried I was going to lose you. You're my best friend..."

"You two know each other?" Adrien said.

"We've been friends with each other for millennia." Tikki answered. "Every kwami was met every kwami at least once."

"I sensed Tikki was in danger when Marinette was over the fire pit. I was scared as heck." Plagg said.

"Can kwamis sense each others presence?" Marinette asked.

"Yes, but, it is forbidden to reveal the identity of a Miraculous holder to another Miraculous holder without their said permission." Tikki answered. "If a kwami breaks that rule, there can, and almost certainly will be consequences for doing so."

"But we don't need to worry about that anymore. You two figured it out all on your own." Plagg said. "It took Adrien a while, but he did it."

"How did you discover the truth so quickly?" Adrien asked.

"I saw you throw away a Valentine's Day poem, then you, as Cat Noir, recited it to my alter-ego." Marinette explained.

"That would explain how you found it and wrote the response back. If you had signed it, I would have known you were Ladybug." Adrien said.

After hanging out til it was close to midnight, Marinette transformed into Ladybug.

"I love you, my little kitten." Ladybug said.

Adrien kissed Ladybug. "Goodnight, my lady." he said.

She swung off and went back to her house. The following day, the students were in Ms. Mendeleiev were taking a quiz. Chloe glared at Marinette for five minutes after she finished the quiz.

"Chloe, why are you glaring at Marinette?" Ms. Mendeleiev asked.

"Are you jealous of her and Adrien?" Alix asked.

"I'm not jealous." she answered. "Those two have been sneaking out of class because they're "secretly" in love. It's scandalous!"

"Huh?" Marinette asked.

"Rumors have been flying around since this morning." Max explained.

"Looks like you have some explaining to do." Alya said.


	14. A Not So Simple Love Story

Adrien and Marinette had to explain a not-so-simple love story to the entire chemistry class.

"It's a long story. During all of the Dark Cupid Chaos last Valentine's Day, Adrien accidentally let the cat out of the bag. He revealed a highly surprising, yet also highly embarrassing secret to me. Because I don't want to humiliate him, I will not reiterate his secret aloud." Marinette began. "After learning this secret, I began to ponder what I should do. Feeling more confident I decided to talk to him, learn more about him, and try and strengthen our friendship."

"On Valentine's day, I received a card that I believed was from my soulmate, but it wasn't signed. The next school day, Chloe tried to claim that she signed the card, but I knew that was a lie. As I began to hang out with Marinette, I found that she was really nice, trustworthy, and an awesome girl." Adrien said.

"Two days later, auditions for the school's annual talent show had begun. During this, a kid named Jean Duparc had been akumatized into the Magician of Misfortune. He ended up breaking Alix's ankle, turning Chloe into a rabbit, and nearly made the Eiffel Tower disappear. Luckily our heroes stopped him." Marinette continued.

"The following day I auditioned for the talent show, getting high remarks from the judges. Unfortunately for Jean, he was banned from this years talent show because the judges believe that Jean, in his akumatized state, was deliberately trying to hurt Alix. Much to my surprise, I won first place in the talent show competition and 250 euros. Knowing Jean needed the money more than I did, I gave him my winnings. In return, he did a free tarot card reading. Unfortunately, the results weren't good. As time went on, I thought of myself and Marinette as more than just friends while making the short film Horrificator, and the following day, I realized she meant everything to me. I loved her, yet I was in denial." Adrien explained.

"Several days had passed and I decided to confess to Adrien the truth. We met at the Eiffel Tower, but right before I told him anything, I heard a very loud vibration. I knew someone was watching us. Sabrina, on Chloe's orders, had followed me, while Chloe followed Adrien. After Chloe came out of her hiding place, she started questioning us. Adrien accused her of being jealous, which she denied. Then I did something very impulsive; I kissed him on the lips. In hindsight, I'm not sure why I did it. I thought it was just to get Chloe off our backs, but did I just want to make her jealous? Or did I want an excuse to kiss my crush, Adrien?" Marinette asked herself. "Also in retrospect, it was probably not a good idea."

"Eventually, they left, and I asked Marinette why she kissed me. She didn't answer. Then I kissed her for no real reason. We both knew us being a romantic entanglement was a lie, but Marinette seemed to enjoy living that lie. Eventually I was forced to leave for a photoshoot, unintentionally leaving Marinette in both confusion and despair. Afterwards, I couldn't help but feel guilty. She loved me, and I felt like I dragged her along. What kind of friend was I?" Adrien asked.

"After finishing a paper for English class, I was attacked by Mirelle and Aurore, their eyes glowing green. I evaded their attacks and ran into the courtyard only to see terrible things." Marinette said. She turned to the teacher. "First off, you, Mrs. Bustier and every other teacher was knocked unconscious. Next, Alix was in a bind. Then, I saw that almost every student in this class with glowing green eyes, under the mind-control of Cleopatra. After that, I noticed that Sabrina wasn't mind controlled and was helping her of her own free will. Last but not least, I realized that Chloe was Cleopatra. As I ran from her servants, who were told to go after me, I realized that my ruse had infuriated her."

"I had seen Marinette running past my house. I had to help her, even if I didn't have any superpowers. I saw her captured and I knew I had to do something. Out of the corner of my eye, I also saw Cat Noir, but Ladybug was not there. The black cat superhero followed Cleopatra and her servants, and I trailed way behind them." Adrien added. "As I chased them down, I realized that Marinette was the one I was looking for. She was my soulmate and she had been right behind me this whole time."

"As Adrien ran to Le Grand Paris, Cat Noir showed up and fought all of Cleopatra's servants. That is, all but one. Sabrina stayed still. Then she did something totally crazy. She ran up to Cleopatra, grabbed her wrist, took my lucky charm off it, and threw it over to Cat Noir. How did Chloe even get the charm in the first place? I have no clue, but he took the charm and defeated her servants. Shortly after that, Adrien arrived and Cleopatra imprisoned and knocked out Sabrina for betraying her. While Cat Noir battled Cleopatra, I nearly fell to my death, but Adrien saved me. Cat Noir threw the charm back to us and the two of us escaped to the Notre Dame. We confessed that we knew the truth about each others secrets and that we were in love with each other."

"Me being in love with Marinette may have started as a lie, but this is no longer the case. She has stolen my heart. I love her." Adrien said.

A lot of "Awwww"s were heard. Then everyone glared at Chloe. "What?" she asked.


	15. Perfect Duet

Author's Notes:

-Happy Valentine's Day, everyone! I hope you enjoyed this story.

"Chloe Bourgeois... You have caused a lot of trouble, even when you weren't akumatized." Ms. Mendeleiev said.

"Aside from trying to kill Marinette, what else has she done?" Nathaniel asked.

"Let's see... She stole Marinette's derby hat design to try and claim it as her own. She accused Marinette of trying to steal her bracelet. She sent a humiliating picture of Kim to every student in this school and posted it on Instagram. She stole Marinette's charm bracelet." Alya answered, while counting on her fingers. "Do I need to continue?"

"I never stole her bracelet!" Chloe exclaimed.

"Then how did you get it?" Max asked.

"I found it." Chloe answered. "Sabrina, you were with me at that time. Did I or did I not just find the lucky charm?"

"You... you did steal it." Sabrina lied. She glared at Chloe. "You've been very bad Chloe. I won't assist you in your nefarious deeds anymore! I should have reported you a long time ago!"

"What?! But I didn't steal it!" Chloe claimed.

"Enough!" Ms. Mendeleiev said. "I have no choice but to call the authorities. Even if you didn't steal the bracelet, you're still in trouble."

Chloe was backed into a corner. Sabrina, Alya and Ivan stared at Chloe to make sure she wouldn't run away.

"Another reason to hate Chloe..." Nathaniel muttered.

He wrote down something on a sheet of paper and resumed sketching out a fight of Cleopatra vs Cat Noir.

"What is that?" Ms. Mendeleiev asked after hanging up. She looked at the mess of papers on his lab table.

"It's a sketch of what I think the battle between Cat Noir and Cleopatra looked like." he answered. "And this is a list of reasons Chloe is so despicable."

"I thought you weren't much of a writer." Juleka said.

"I'm not. There are a few reasons why I have this list." he said, unrolling the list. The scroll tumbled onto the floor.

"That's a long list." Alix commented.

"Look at 75." Nathaniel said.

"Number 75. For trying to kill Marinette in her akumatized state of mind." she read.

"So why do you have that list?" Adrien asked.

"A few reasons. One, Kim dared me to do this before Alix beat him in the race at the Trocadero." he answered. "Two, it serves as a form of anger management. Three, it gives me ideas for my drawings."

"Anger management?" Rose asked.

"I'm worried about being akumatized again." he confessed.

"But if an akuma is captured, a person wouldn't be able to be akumatized again. Would they?" Mylene asked.

"I don't know, but I'd rather not find out." Marinette answered.

"I thought akumatized victims didn't remember anything." Adrien said.

"I've noticed that it varies from one victim to another." Nathaniel answered. "For instance, I remembered everything shortly after Ladybug defeated Evillustrator. Alya didn't remember anything. Heck, she didn't even know that she had been akumatized until she saw the news a few hours after Cat Noir and Ladybug stopped Lady Wifi. Whereas Nino doesn't remember the slow dance at Adrien's birthday party when he was the Bubbler, yet he does remember capturing the superhero duo."

Adrien looked sadly at Chloe. "Chloe, what do you remember?" he asked.

"I...I remember trying to kill Marinette. I didn't think that Adrien was the one to save her from death, but, maybe my memory is failing me. During the final battle, I saw a flash of light. Cat Noir had disappeared and Adrien was there. I don't remember why, but all of my rage... vanished. Gone. I was emotionally stunned. The next thing I know, I'm back to my normal self and I'm all alone at Parc des Princes." she answered. "I may not recall all of my actions, but I remember how I felt."

"Well how do you feel about prison?" Roger asked, handcuffing her.

"I..I don't believe this is happening! This is the worst day ever! Curse you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng!" Chloe exclaimed.

She was dragged out by Lieutenant Roger. Many of the students cheered, but Adrien looked down.

"Are you okay?" Nino asked.

"I never knew that Chloe's true self was that evil..." he muttered.

"It'll be ok, Adrien. She may have been your best friend, but you have others here who are right by your side." Marinette said, holding his hand. "Including me."

The bell rang seconds after she said that.

"Don't forget your test is on Friday!" Ms. Mendeleiev exclaimed.

Several weeks and then months had passed since the day Adrien and Marinette started their romantic relationship. No matter what challenge came towards them, Ladybug and Cat Noir could handle anything. Adrien and Ladybug were in the park.

"What is this?" Adrien asked Ladybug.

"I'm not sure. Tikki said it was important."

After defeating Volpina, they went down to Master Fu's place.

"Ladybug. Cat Noir. It is so nice to see you." Master Fu greeted them.

"I believe this belongs you." Ladybug said, handing the Miraculous book to him.

"Thank you. I have been searching for this for decades." he said. "Cat Noir, you're about to detransform."

"It's alright. According to Plagg, you're the one who gave me and Ladybug our Miraculouses. She knows who I am and I know who she is." Cat Noir said.

"Adrien." Ladybug answered.

"Marinette." Cat Noir answered.

They detransformed. Master Fu widened his eyes in shock, then smiled.

"I did not expect you two to discover each others identities this quickly." he said. "How did you know?"

"It's a long story, Great Guardian." Tikki answered.

"Well why don't we sit down and dicuss it over tea?" he asked.

The two heroes smiled and followed Master Fu.

Epilogue

Meanwhile, Chloe, who was still behind bars, had lost herself. Her cell had a tainted window and she hadn't seen the sun since she was imprisoned. Instead of wearing the traditional orange jumpsuit, she was given a black and white striped dress that reached to her ankles, but it was torn, exposing her right leg. Her hair was loose and incredibly messy but she didn't even care. Her vanity was gone.

"Chloe?" she heard someone ask.

"Huh?" she asked aloud.

No one had said anything. She not only lost her freedom, she had lost her sanity as well.

 _I nearly had everything. Adrien was nearly mine... But my chances with him are crushed. I thought Marinette and Adrien were always sneaking away to cuddle together, but... I was wrong.  
_

She still remembered feeling guilty while fighting Cat Noir. For some reason, she felt like... she admired him. But she didn't know why. Before ending up in jail, she heard rumors about Cat Noir and Ladybug being in a romantic relationship, but no one, not even Alya, could confirm that they were a couple. Even if it wasn't true, she knew she had no chance with him. She looked at the photo of Cat Noir she had, which was the only thing she was allowed to keep.

 _Who are you?_


End file.
